Chapter Thirty Nine

Late March, 2012
Launceston, Tasmania

It had been a beautiful afternoon. Love and commitment celebrated during a modest ceremony limited to family and close friends. Melissa had been Monica's Maid of Honour and Maura had been exceptionally surprised when asked to join Brad's wedding party, but she had graciously accepted. She took great pleasure in dressing up for the part of groomsman, wearing a black designer tux, complete with white shirt and a lilac coloured tie to match with the bridal parties colour scheme. She had inadvertently outshone the rest of the groomsmen, including the Best Man, but Brad and Monica hadn't cared in the slightest.

Jane as Maura's official plus one thought she had seen it all in the past when Maura wore her perfectly fitted dresses that accentuated every curve of her body, but there was something decidedly delicious about Maura in a designer tuxedo. Jane had worn a tasteful suit that Maura had picked out and paid for; wisely refusing to mention the cost. Jane suspected it cost more than an arm and a leg, but who was she to complain? It was the life she would have to grow accustomed to.

Monica knew her best friend and best woman, as Melissa had fiercely declared, so well, that she didn't even try to get Melissa into a dress. She just told her the colour scheme and prayed to God that her friend would pick something acceptable. Where on earth Melissa had found a quality looking lilac coloured suit was beyond Monica, but she wasn't at all surprised. The shoes matched, the shirt was white and she had found a lilac coloured bow tie as well. Monica would have felt a little upstaged, if she cared about any of that stuff, but she didn't. She just cared that the people most important to her were there on her special day.

Monica wore a simple but elegant white dress with a short train and a lace veil. Brad's tuxedo mirrored Maura's in general look, although cost significantly less. Gabby had gone with the basic black and white dress suit and stayed in her lane, more than aware not to upstage the bride.

The ceremony itself took place in the historic landmark chapel of Entally Estate, near Hadspen. It was a quaint little chapel with a vibrant atmosphere. The estate itself was a picturesque combination of vineyards, manicured gardens, English trees and historical sandstone buildings - including the oldest conservatory in Australia. The reception moved the wedding party to a temporary marquee in the walled farmyard, which was surrounded by centuries-old oak trees. Portable light stands lit up the marquee and surrounding grounds. The DJ pumped out assorted lovey dovey pop tracks.

Dinner had been served and speeches made, Melissa's was particularly humorous and had left Monica's face buried in her hands in embarrassment a couple of times. Brad and Monica had gazed lovingly into each other's eyes during their first dance and now the party was in full swing for all those in attendance.

For Melissa and Jane it was the first time they had come face to face since their relationship had disintegrated. Jane had to admit she was pretty wowed looking at Melissa standing next to Monica during the ceremony. She wore her outfit like a boss, almost as well as Maura wore hers. She felt guilty for the obvious physical attraction, which hadn't gone unnoticed by Maura either. Unlike Jane, Maura wasn't at all concerned. It wasn't a secret that Jane found Melissa physically attractive, and given the highly emotional circumstances and their subsequent distancing, and the mighty fine outfit, which even Maura thought looked damn good, it was to be expected. Jane appreciated her girlfriend's absolute understanding, but not so much the way she had so nonchalantly addressed it while they were seated for dinner.

Melissa had been so focused on the wedding itself and making sure everything went smoothly that she hadn't had much time to think about any inevitable encounter with Jane in the slightest. As such when she and Gabby hit the dance floor and embraced for a slow dance, her eyes fell onto Jane and Maura taking advantage of the slow song themselves and it hit her then that she wasn't quite prepared. It wasn't that Jane wasn't attractive in the suit she had no doubt Maura had picked out, she was, but the shock to her system wasn't physical attraction like Jane had experienced. It was just seeing Jane at all. She wasn't ready for it emotionally. She clung tighter to Gabby as they shuffled around the dance floor.

"Are you alright?" Gabby asked, having felt her girlfriend's grip on her waist tighten.

"Yeah. I just forgot Jane would be here. It's a lot."

From the tone alone, Gabby knew Melissa was hurting and it didn't surprise her that there were a lot of unresolved feelings there. She didn't like it, would never like it, but Melissa had put off talking to Jane for so long it was inevitable. Gabby felt secure in their love, and only really saw two options. The first was to crack a joke, "Well if you let me, I could always take a swing and plant her on her arse. Might make a bit of a scene, and Monica might just have my guts for garters, but I'd do it for you."

Melissa pulled back just enough so that she could send Gabby a look that quite obviously indicated she was not amused before returning to their cheek to cheek embrace. "I really don't understand why either of you two think going all neanderthal is attractive, at all."

Gabby chuckled. "Oh honey, we weren't thinking about impressing you when we were throwing fists. We weren't really thinking at all." She extended her arm to allow Melissa to twirl, and then pulled her back towards her body. Option one hadn't worked, which only left option two. It was time to pull off the band aid. She gently guided them around until they were dancing in synchronicity with Jane and Maura. With one look at Maura she communicated her intentions.

Maura's approving smile was all she needed to cease her dance with Melissa. She tapped Jane on the shoulder, "Swapsies?"

Maura had to stifle a giggle and Melissa glared at Gabby and Maura both. She looked hesitantly at Jane, who was clearly taking her guidance from Maura. Shaking her head Melissa held out her hand and said, "May I have this dance?"

Jane hesitated for a moment before she recognised in Maura's eyes that she was more than okay with the idea. She accepted the hand and she and Melissa moved away a little, dancing awkwardly as they adjusted to one another again.

Gabby took Maura by the hand and the pair synchronised into a simple slow dance with much more ease. They maintained a respectable distance, there was no cheek to cheek, but it was comfortable nonetheless. "Those two really need to talk," she finally verbalised what she had hoped her eyes had indicated before.

Maura simply smiled slyly and teased. "You do realise that Jane spent most of the ceremony ogling Melissa."

Gabby cast a quick look over her shoulder before turning back to Maura and shaking her head. If Maura was teasing about it, it wasn't anything she needed to worry about. "Yeah well, can't say I blame the woman. Have you seen my girlfriend?"

"Mmm," Maura hummed, looking beyond Gabby to where their girlfriend's appeared to still be struggling with any synchronicity with their movements. "She's not quite my type."

"Doesn't wear a uniform, you mean?" Gabby winked playfully, before extending her arm out and allowing Maura to twirl and then return to her.

"Precisely," Maura said with a smirk, quietly impressed by Gabby's dance moves.

Moved by the moment and their friendship Gabby smiled conspiratorially. She patted the inside pocket of her jacket and whispered, "I'm going to ask Missy to marry me tonight."

"She's a lucky woman." Maura responded, genuinely pleased for her friend knowing all too well it was a moment years in the making.

"Nah," Gabby started, turning to look back at Melissa with awe and reverence, "I'm the lucky one."

"So this isn't awkward at all," Jane joked, partially about their dancing, but mostly about the way they had been pushed together by their girlfriends.

"Gabby thinks I should have called you weeks ago." Melissa admitted, as she looked down at Jane's feet trying to find a rhythm. Gabby and Maura moved so well together, she felt a little competitive. "Ugh, maybe you should let me lead."

Jane chuckled. "It's not a competition."

"Have you seen the way they move together?" Melissa was feeling jealous and it showed.

There was something about slipping back into the back and forth of days gone by that put Jane at ease. Maura could dance well with anyone who knew how to move, which Gabby so clearly did. Besides, as much as she disliked Gabby, she knew that any woman who could walk away from Maura Isles had a damn good reason. Relaxing into their moves, she said, "Gabby loves you, Missy. You don't have to worry about how well they dance together. She chose you. I remember that much about that day."

Melissa's eyes snapped to Jane's then and she felt so incredibly guilty. "I'm so sorry Jane, the way I handed you off to Maura. I just didn't know what else to do."

"You did the right thing. I wasn't in a good place. It's taken and will continue to take a lot of work to stay in this better place I've reached." Jane sighed and shook her head a little, "Besides I think I owe you the apology. It's a bit hard to love someone who has one foot out the door."

Jane was so clearly talking about them, but her wording summoned a dark cloud within Melissa. She swallowed thickly and looked at Jane, her eyes displaying how shaken she was. "I'm the one with one foot out the door."

Jane searched Melissa's eyes further and was instantly worried. She gently eased them a little further from where their partners were dancing, oblivious to whatever the hell it was going through Melissa's mind. "What are you talking about?"

"Got an offer to play for Chicago in the fastpitch league and I wanna take it. I mean… I've already accepted. I just haven't been able to find a way to tell Gabby."

That was as heavy a confession as Jane could have been expecting. It knocked the wind out of her own sails on Gabby's behalf, and she didn't even like the woman. "Gabby loves you, she'll support you in chasing your dreams."

"You and I both know that's not the issue, Jane." Melissa appreciated Jane trying to play supportive friend, but she just needed a sounding board. "She's a cop, it's just who she is. I can't ask her to give up her dreams for mine."

Jane shook her head, "No, you can't not ask her. You have to ask her. You can't just walk away from her without giving her a chance to choose you above all else. Don't do that to her, Missy. It'll destroy her."

Melissa quirked an eyebrow at Jane, "Since when did you become an expert on my girlfriend?" The moment she saw the pain in Jane's eyes was the moment she realised this was as much to do with Jane's own history. It was as much about Maura and her decision to leave Boston. She really wanted to reach out and press her hand to Jane's cheek and reassure her but she couldn't, it wasn't appropriate, not now. "I'm sorry Maura never gave you a choice in the matter back then, but I'm really not sorry that it allowed me the chance to love you, Jane."

Jane felt tears roll down her cheeks and an intense melancholy. She pulled Melissa a little closer and danced cheek to cheek. Their feet finally moved in a delicate synchronicity, even after the music stopped. "Me too," she whispered softly. This was their moment to let go, to move forward, to say goodbye to what had been between them.

When the music stopped Gabby and Maura turned to find their women and each reacted quite differently to what they saw. Maura immediately threw her hand out in front of Gabby knowing that her jealousy was about to rear its ugly head. "Don't. Let them be. It's their letting go."

Gabby didn't like the lack of distance between Melissa and Jane one iota and yet she trusted Maura completely, but it left her jealousy with nowhere to go. Her chest heaved and she had to look away, "Just tell me when it's over," she ground out between her teeth.

It wasn't that Maura was comfortable with what she was seeing either, but she understood that Jane had quite literally just been handed off by Melissa. They hadn't had a conversation about the end of their relationship and as uncomfortable as it was to watch, Maura understood it was an important step in Jane's healing process. She didn't feel threatened at all, but she understood Gabby's inclination towards jealousy. Jane and Melissa had had an instant connection from the very beginning, a connection that may have taken herself and Gabby many months to cultivate when they had first met Jane and Melissa respectively. It was hard not to be jealous of such a connection, but there was no reason to doubt either of them. She knew Melissa loved Gabby as sure as she knew that Jane loved her.

Maura placed a hand on Gabby's shoulder and softly said, "You can look again. Their moment is over."

Gabby turned back around just as Melissa and Jane approached them. Jane was hyper aware of the fact that Maura's eyes had been on her, but she could tell from the softness in her eyes that once again she was understanding. Sometimes that level of understanding felt such a contradiction to the absolute lack of understanding Maura seemed to have regarding the way she left Boston in the first place. It was something Jane had chosen to live with. She was happy with Maura, talking about it would only stir up hurt she didn't want to deal with.

Melissa immediately entwined her hand in Gabby's and led her away, citing a need for air. She briefly locked eyes with Jane on the way out, and ducked her head, well and truly aware that Jane didn't approve of what was about to happen.

Jane watched Melissa leave before turning her eyes back to Maura. She linked arms with her girlfriend and walked them back to their table. The others that had been seated with them were all either dancing or chatting away at other tables, affording them a modicum of privacy. After Maura sat, Jane pulled her seat closer and sat down next to her girlfriend, her hand immediately seeking out Maura's. "I'm really sorry about the way I've been behaving today. I don't think I was really prepared for what seeing her again would do to me."

Maura took comfort from Jane's proximity and the way their hands entwined so perfectly together. She smiled understandingly and leaned into Jane, bringing her head to rest against her shoulder. "No need to apologise Jane. You needed closure and I trust that you now have it."

Jane pressed a kiss against Maura's hair, "Yeah, I do. Thanks for understanding, Maur."

There were so many things Maura wanted to thank Jane for, from how seriously she was working on her mental health, to the way she had started being more emotionally open and transparent, and plenty more in between. She imagined if she started, they may be there long after the guests had departed, and she thought it best to save that for a more private setting. Common courtesy would have to do. "You're welcome."

Jane squeezed Maura's hand in acknowledgement of the things that went unsaid between them. Sure she had been caught up in the inevitability of needing closure with Melisssa, but that didn't mean she hadn't enjoyed the simple things that came with celebrating love. A moment on the dance floor with Maura was a moment worth preserving in her mind. The radiance with which Maura smiled while talking and laughing with Monica and Brad, also a moment worth preserving.

The fact that Jane had landed the kindest, most conscientious, considerate and sometimes socially awkward genius on the planet wasn't lost on her at all. She relished the way Maura had been coming out of her shell during her time in Launceston. It was something she had known she would never want to take away from her girlfriend, but now she realised that it was enough. Maura's happiness, the light in her eyes, the pearly whites that showed when she smiled wide, it was enough.

She still had a month to go before she was due home, but she already knew as Maura quite literally took an unexpected nap on her shoulder, that she was where she needed to be. Boston, her family and friends, being a detective, it was all just white noise. It wasn't that she didn't love them, and didn't absolutely dread telling her mother she wasn't going to be coming home, it was that Maura was, quite simply put, everything. Although Jane did consider telling Maura she could be the one to handle Angela, because the more she thought about that conversation the more she felt a stomach ulcer attempting to form at record speed.

Surprisingly while considering all the moving parts in their lives Jane's mind stuck on Gabby. Now while she would never ever admit to anyone anything other than severe distaste for the woman, she had grown to respect her, somewhat, just a little bit. She recognised that Gabby wore her heart on her sleeve a little more than Jane was comfortable doing, but that they both loved hard. It was for this reason she gently shook Maura awake. "Hey sleepy head."

Maura for her part looked aghast at having dozed off. She straightened up and shot an apologetic look to Jane, the sun was still in the sky, granted it was setting, but it wasn't that late. Not to mention the music in the background and the din of chatter. "I'm so sorry Jane, I don't know what happened."

Jane's smile was big and gracious. "Don't be sorry, I wouldn't have even woken you if it wasn't for something I thought I should mention."

Maura immediately did her quirky little head tilt that told Jane she was curious. "What is that?"

"Missy's been offered a spot on the Chicago fastpitch team. She's going to take it. I think she's going to break it off with Gabby, some nonsense about not wanting to force Gabby into sacrificing her career goals."

Maura went pale as Jane's words sunk in. She reached her hand up and gripped Jane's shoulder urgently. She was incredibly concerned. "Gabby plans to propose tonight!"

"Fuuu…" the sharp look from Maura caused Jane to elongate and alter her word choice, "...dge." She couldn't begin to imagine what that might do to Gabby, after all she wasn't close with the woman, but Maura was and Maura looked like she had seen a ghost. She stood and said, "I'll go and find them and…"

"And what Jane?" Maura appreciated Jane's good intentions, but knew that Gabby would not react well to her appearing on the scene. She wasn't even sure they should interfere. "It's difficult and I am not at all comfortable with allowing Gabby to walk into such heartache, but what can we really do here Jane?"

"I could make a scene." Jane shrugged, figuring if she made a scene Melissa wouldn't be able to resist sorting it out quickly so as not to impugn on the celebrations that were meant to be all about Monica and Brad. A better idea came to mind, "Or we could just tell Monica Melissa's plan to leave and let her do all the interrupting."

Maura could not believe how pleased with herself Jane looked at that suggestion. "Do not involve the bride, Jane."

"Well what then Maura? We just let them break each other's hearts in a uniquely them kind of way? Do you know how stupid this whole thing is? They're so incredibly in love with one another and I just know how this is going to play out. Gabby's going to get down on one knee, Missy's going to panic and tell her to stop, she's going to blurt out that she's leaving and Gabby's going to want to go with her." Jane had to stop and take a breath, the entire scenario playing out in her head causing her more discomfort than she would ever admit to. "Missy's then going to break up with her, because instead of listening. Instead of paying attention to the micro expressions on the love of her damn life's face, she's going to break her heart because she refuses to put her dreams above Gabby's. Instead of just accepting that maybe all Gabby cares about is her, she's just going to take that off the table. It's not going to be a part of the equation. She's going to crush her, Maura. Missy is going to crush her!"

If it wasn't the tears now streaming down Jane's face. If it wasn't the fact she was shaking. If it wasn't the incredible depth of emotion in her tirade. It was that Maura knew Jane all too well. She immediately stood and pulled Jane into a fierce hug. She pushed up on her tippy toes and pressed a gentle kiss to Jane's lips. "I am so very sorry Jane, I should have discussed with you in detail my plans to leave and why. I should have given you the opportunity to plead your case, whatever it may have looked like at the time. It was not my right to make decisions on your behalf without your input."

Jane gripped Maura and buried her face against her neck. "I would've chosen you, even then. God Maura, I don't care that we are gonna spend the rest of our lives in this podunk town. I just needed to be a part of the decision making process."

Maura gently patted Jane's back. "Well you are now, love. Forever and always. I promise you." It wasn't lost on her that Jane had said 'the rest of our lives' but she decided to save her focus for the more pressing comfort required. Jane was most definitely triggered by their friend's romance and its potential failure due to a lack of communication, but knowing Gabby well, interrupting wouldn't help. It would only hinder. "I sincerely request that you let them experience what they must. If events truly unfold as you fear, then we must be there for them in the aftermath and trust that if it is meant to be, they will find their way back to one another."

"Like we did huh?"

Maura kissed the side of Jane's head. "Precisely, love."

"I just want it on the record that I hate doing nothing here." Jane stated flatly, her heart surprisingly aching for Gabby as much as Melissa. It wasn't always black and white. Both hearts were bound to break, and Jane was too damn in touch with her feelings not to recognise that. She cursed Doctor Levinson for being too good at her job and clung to Maura even tighter in an attempt to recompose her emotions. She really needed to channel Big Bad Detective Rizzoli, because being just Jane was sucky in so many ways. "Absolutely hate it," she reiterated.

Maura did not disagree with her girlfriend. She hated it too. For both women involved. She just hoped that Melissa and Gabby could learn from the mistakes she and Jane had made. Nobody should have to know the kind of heartache she and Jane had put each other through, inadvertently or not. Her mind sadly settled on that topic she couldn't help but circle back to something else Jane had said. "Launceston is not a podunk town. Merriam-Webster defines Podunk as a small, unimportant, isolated town. I would hardly call Launceston any of those things."

Jane rolled her eyes, "Because a town of one hundred thousand people on an island at the butt end of Australia couldn't possibly seem podunk to someone from Boston, Maura."

Maura pulled out of the hug, just knowing that Jane had rolled her eyes. She pursed her lips and gently shook her head, a sly smile graced her lips and her eyes filled with mirth as she attempted a humorous retort. "Then I suggest that Bostonian spend a little more time reading the dictionary to understand the terms small, unimportant and isolated."

Jane leaned in and kissed Maura again, just to shut her up. She loved her human Google so incredibly much, and knew in her heart of hearts, she would marry that woman one day.

Unfortunately as far as Gabby and Melissa were concerned, Jane was Nostradamus.

Gabby got down on one knee and Melissa walked away.

A/N: Okay so as I was writing this, Jane totally inadvertently destroyed the narrative with her mini emotional transference... so I thought, did I want to write this long scene fleshing out what she had just broken into several direct points, and I decided it might in it's own way be more fitting to go with the ending I did. I'll probably visit that scene in flashbacks in the sequel though, but not sure. I'm just curious if you guys agree with the decision I made regarding the Gabby/Missy stuff at the end?

Remember to check out chapter 38 if you haven't, as I am uploading 38, 39, and the epilogue all close to one another. Thanks for reading and staying with me for this incredible journey!